VFW Post 3673 offers free Thanksgiving meal

BESSEMER, Mich. (WLUC) - Thanksgiving is all about the food and to celebrate, VFW Post 3673 made sure the community had its fair share of turkey.

Walk in through the double glass doors of VFW Post 3673 in Bessemer and you’ll be sure to find a community of veterans ready to welcome you in no matter what your walk of life. On Thanksgiving Day, you’ll also be sure to find a warm meal and some good conversation.

Hundreds gathered at the VFW Post in Bessemer on Thursday for a Thanksgiving feast. The meal was free for all community members. Mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, turkey and other traditional Thanksgiving dishes were on the menu.

VFW Post 3673 Commander Donna Frello said this annual tradition began six years ago. She added that it was inspired by her days spent away from family while in the military.

“We realized that since we have been out of the service we haven’t really done anything for outreach as far as bringing people together if they were alone,” Frello explained.

She continued, “That’s the whole purpose is to bring people together, with a special invitation to all veterans because we are a veteran organization.”

Before digging in attendees honored all of the prisoners of war missing in action (POW-MIA).

Frello said roughly 81,000 soldiers are unaccounted for from World War II to the present. Frello added that she is thankful for her safe return from military service, especially since many have not had that same fortune.

“We are just thankful that we are able to do it,” Frello said.

Frello added that she is also thankful for the help of volunteers. She explained that it is them who make the post’s Friday fish fry dinners and Thanksgiving meals possible.

“We would not be a post without everybody pitching in, but especially our volunteers that come time after time for every event we have,” Frello noted.

In addition to in-person dining, Frello said her post delivered over 150 takeout meals to community members who could not make it. This included feeding the Gogebic County Sheriff’s Department.

Frello said the VFW is always looking for new members.

No matter where you live, chances are there is a post somewhere near you.

For more information on how to join, visit the VFW’s website by clicking here.